Nova twisted her hair and secured it at the nape of her neck with a tie. She put her hand on the center console and smiled to herself when James intertwined his fingers with hers.

Her sleepless night had ended well thanks to her activities with James. She’d been with a few guys during her time at the academy. It had never been that enjoyable before. None of the men had ever been so attentive to her before. She didn’t know if it was a human thing or if she’d just had bad taste in lovers. Either way, she wasn’t going to complain. Last night was a night to remember.

What would become of her and James? There was a chance they wouldn’t even make it off this planet. If that happened would they spend their dying moments together? The two of them and Emma huddled together and drawing their last breaths wasn’t how she wanted to go out. She wanted to die as an old woman in her sleep.

Even if they did escape the Imanji she was just starting out in her career. James, regardless of his military training would never be allowed on a Delphi ship. It was law, one that was strictly enforced after the Imanji’s betrayal. She couldn’t blame her people for upholding the law. It was there for everyone’s protection.

Perhaps she was getting ahead of herself. She needed to take things one step at a time. The future would be what it would be. She could only hope that it would be one favorable to her. Not to mention, she was assuming that James would want to carry on a relationship with her.

She chanced a glance over at him. His eyes stared straight out at the road. When he realized she was staring he turned to her. “You okay?”

Nova smiled. “Just thinking.”

“About?”

She shook her head and let out a breath. “The future. What it may hold.”

His fingers tightened around hers. “Last night was special for me too, Nova. I’d like to get to know you better.”

It was like he’d read her mind. Maybe he had. She didn’t know everything humans could do. For all she knew he could read minds, though now that she thought about it, it was unlikely. Someone who could read minds wouldn’t be so afraid of her species. They would know they meant no harm.

“I’d like that. There are so many obstacles ahead of us. My mom and dad would never approve of me dating an otherworlder. They very well might disown me this time.”

“Are there interracial relationships on Delphi?” James asked looking at her.

“Yes.” She didn’t even have to think about it. One of her school classmates and parents’ acquaintances had married a man from Aynxa. It had been the talk of her parents’ social circle for months. They had considered it quite the scandal.

“Then what is the problem?”

She supposed there wasn’t a problem. Her parents would never approve of her unless she did exactly what they wanted, including marrying some man of their choosing. She would never get their approval because she had no intentions of ever marrying one of their friends’ uptight sons.

“I would have my military duties still.” That was the truth. She’d worked so hard for her career. Sure she liked James but she couldn’t just give it up for him.

“I would never ask you to stop doing what you’re doing. It’s honorable. I understand what it’s like to be in the military. We can figure things out when it comes to that.” He squeezed her hand. “How about we make it to safety whether it be on your ship or here on Earth and then we figure out what to do next.”

“That sounds like a good idea.”

She opened her mouth to say more but stopped when they turned down the Nielson’s driveway. James pulled the truck to a stop in front of the house and got out.

He didn’t have to knock on the door. The moment his feet hit the ground the front door burst open and Emma came bounding outside and right into his arms. The sight made her smile. The love the pair had for each other was something she’d craved for herself for as long as she could remember. What would it be like to be embraced by family – one that loved you unconditionally?

The idea had barely entered her mind when her gaze drifted to Mr. Nielson. His hard stare was on her yet again. This time he had a rifle in his hands. It wasn’t aimed at her but she could tell by the gleam in his eyes that he was thinking about pointing it at her any second.

She leaned back in her seat and folded her arms over her center, meeting his gaze head on and refusing to let him intimidate her. He’d never met her parents. Her mother was the queen at giving the stink eye. Nova had been on the receiving end of it more times than she could count.

The car door opened and Emma hopped into the backseat distracting Nova enough to look away from him.

“Hey, Nova. I’m glad to see you and my uncle are both okay.” Emma gave her an enthusiastic hug from behind. “I was worried last night. I couldn’t sleep at all.”

“It’s fine.” Nova patted the girl’s arm. She wanted to tell her everything would be okay but she had no way of knowing that.

“I heard we are supposed to evacuate to your ship. It’s all they keep saying on the short wave radio.”

“It’s the safest place to be at the moment.” That was the truth. The shields on the ship had held up against every Imanji attack to date and it was well equipped for Earth’s inhabitants.

“Mr. Nielson doesn’t believe that you are really here to help. I told him he was wrong but—”

“It’s okay,” Nova interrupted. She was honored the girl had stood up for her having just met her but she didn’t need to be defended. Mr. Nielson would see soon enough that her people were the good guys.

“I’ve never heard him be so irate before.”

“It’s natural to be upset.” That was the truth. These people were losing their homes, their livelihoods, some of them even losing family members. Upset was a perfectly acceptable emotion.

“Well, I just thought I’d warn you to steer clear of him.”

“You are good friends with his daughter?” Nova asked as Mrs. Nielson accompanied the girl to the back seat of a beat up vehicle.

“Oh, yeah. We are best friends. We met in kindergarten and have had each other’s backs ever since.”

Nova hummed her answer. She hadn’t had many friends growing up. She didn’t fit in with the people she went to school with because her views had always deferred so much from everyone else’s and the few friends she had tried to make outside of school had viewed her as an upper level stuck up elitist.

In truth, Maddox Livstik was her first true friend and the only person that had ever stuck up for her. She had a few people she talked to on The Retribution but no one she could really call friend.

Her attention went to James. Surely they were friends now, if not something more.

James clapped Mr. Nielson on the back and then trotted to the truck. He got in and put the car in gear. “We better hurry to the school. I don’t want anyone to think something happened to us.”

“Will we be safe in the mines?” Emma asked.

“Safer than being out in the open.” The mines would protect the humans a little. “We’ll want to go deep into the mine where it is cooler. The cooler the better. It will make it harder for them to pick up on heat signatures.”

“Good thing I packed some sweaters and blankets in my bag,” James said. “Did you by chance put any long sleeve shirts in Emma’s bag?”

“I did.” Nova had thought ahead enough to put more than a few outfits into the bag too. The girl had at least a week’s worth of clothes plus a few stuffed animals that had been on her resting place. Hopefully they would bring the girl some comfort.

“Thanks,” Emma said. She leaned forward and gave Nova another hug.

“What about you. I can’t help but notice that you are warmer than a human. Won’t it make it easier to pick up on your body heat?” James asked. He turned to her briefly before looking back out to the road.

She’d already considered this. “Yes. That’s why I’ll be circling around over head to make sure that no one unexpected shows up.”

“You’ll be out there all by yourself? Aren’t you scared?” Emma asked. She squeezed Nova’s arm almost to the point of pain. Her nails dug into Nova’s flesh but she didn’t pull away from the girl.

She opened her mouth to tell the girl she would be fine but then thought of a different, more truthful answer. “I think we all get scared when we do things. But we can get through it by knowing that we are doing it for the greater good. Sure I’ll be out there but I’ll know that I’m keeping you and everyone else safe.”

James nodded his head in agreement. “All good soldiers get scared. It’s what keeps you safe and humble. You get out there thinking you are invincible you get cocky and make dumb mistakes. I’ve seen it happen more times than I’d like. Being scared is good.”

“So you’re scared, James?” Emma asked her eyes widening.

“Of course I am. There are aliens out there that want to kill us. The key is to not let your fear overwhelm you. Use it to drive you forward, to keep you alert and moving.”

That sounded like sound advice. She was going to have to remember that during her flight above the mines. James was a seasoned solider and she was a newbie who was getting her feet wet on her first mission.

“I didn’t think you were scared of anything?” Emma said shaking her head.

“It’s okay to be scared, Emma. Just don’t let it overwhelm you.” James turned on his blinker and pulled them into the high school lot.

A line of cars lined the parking lot. James waved at a few people as he passed by them. He stopped next to the lead car. Nova’s window went down and James leaned over into her seat to speak to the driver of the other vehicle.

“Is everyone here?” James asked.

“I reckon so,” the man said, “Terry and Bernard said they hit every house in town. If they ain’t here, they ain’t coming.”

“Do you want to lead or do you want me to?” James asked the guy.

“You can do it. You spent more time up there than I ever did.” The man nodded at them and motioned for James to take the lead.

“You spent a lot of time at the mines?” Nova asked curious. She knew some about James but not a lot.

“Yeah,” he flicked his gaze to the back seat to look at Emma as he answered, “your mom used to hang out there a lot. It used to be her go to spot. I’d always go find her and drag her back home.”

“Why would anyone hang out at an abandoned mine?” Nova asked with a frown. Surely it was abandoned for a reason.

“To do drugs,” Emma said with a sigh. James opened his mouth but Emma spoke up first, “You don’t have to protect me, James. I know all about drugs. Health class made sure of it and what they didn’t cover I already knew from living with my mom.”

James huffed and shook his head. “Your mom means well,” he said after a long moment.

“Thanks, but I know she’s a screw up,” Emma said. She flopped back in the back seat and stared out her window.

“Your mom has made some mistakes, but she’s always made sure you’re taken care of.”

“I know.” Emma leaned her head against the window and remained silent.

“I’m sorry,” Nova whispered. She was. She hadn’t intended to bring up a sore subject.

James patted her thigh. “It’s all right. You couldn’t have known.”

The car fell into silence after that, none of them having anything more to say. James’ hand, however, continued to rest on her thigh. She smiled to herself, enjoying the tiny comfort.

Her gaze drifted to the fields as they passed them by. This planet was truly breathtaking. If by some miracle they saved it could she stay here for a little bit just to explore it? They’d flown over the planet’s water earlier. It had been large and blue. What would it be like to swim beneath the waves? If she stayed on for a while would James show her around? Would there be anything to see?

This small slice of land had yet to be touched by the Imanji. She knew for a fact that the volatile aliens had intentionally gone after the highly populated areas. Those places were probably a wasteland by now. Even if they did save this planet it would take them many years to recover from the Imanji’s attack.

They wouldn’t be safe either. The Imanji were ruthless. If by some chance they did save the planet it would only encourage the Imanji to attack again, this time with greater numbers.

A low humming wail drew her from her thoughts. It was in the distance but she would recognize that sound anywhere. The ship’s wail had been ingrained into her since she began training for the military. An Imanji ship was nearby.

Nova leaned forward to peer out the front window. The sky was empty. She fumbled with the buttons on the door until finally the window lowered as it had done earlier.

She unfastened her safety belt and pushed herself up and out the window so her butt was resting on the sill.

“Nova?” James asked.

“I hear an Imanji ship.” She pushed strands of hair out of her face so she could search the clouds.

There in the distance about a mile out were two Imanji ships. Her eyes went to the motorcade. The ship would be to the end of it within seconds. She had to protect these people.

“You need to keep moving and speed up,” she said.

“What are you doing?” James asked.

Nova gave him one last look before she thrust herself out of the window. Fire erupted over her body as it transformed. She flapped her wings and hurried to the ships.